Boys are starting to wear makeup and it’s AWESOME. When you think about it, why was makeup only ever normalized for women? Don’t men have the right to express themselves artistically through cosmetics as well? Thankfully, some guys are out there fighting the battle, and there have been some major breakthroughs these past few years regarding makeup and gender. Here are four vloggers who are breaking the traditional rules in society, and who are normalizing makeup and glam for all genders!
1. James Charles
In 2016, James Charles was announced as the first ever male CoverGirl. This is huge for the makeup industry, as it opens the door to a wider clientele. CoverGirl embraced this great opportunity, not only for company growth, but for the promotion of judgement-free expression. Charles is an incredible makeup artist, and he’s only 17 years old. He first became popular when his grad photos went viral – he wasn’t happy with the first bunch, so he retook them but this time with his highlighter ring to accentuate his makeup. Many people asked if he was transsexual, including his parents, but he is not; he’s a man who simply loves getting glammed up!
2.Joey Graceffa
Joey Graceffa is a quite famous YouTuber with over seven million subscribers! His videos revolve mainly around product reviews, trending YouTube challenges, Q&As, personal experiences and more. He is not primarily a beauty vlogger, but he has made multiple makeup tutorials and he wears makeup regularly. He has a video showing his daily makeup routine, which brings to light the idea that it’s totally acceptable for boys to wear makeup, even if it’s not super-glam! His popularity online is helping makeup, as a gender-neutral concept, gain the exposure it needs.
3. Manny MUA
Manny Gutierrez (known as Manny MUA) is a leader in the male beauty scene, with a total of 2,497,007 YouTube subscribers. His social media platforms circle mainly glam makeup and collaborations with other famous YouTubers such as Colleen Ballinger (Miranda Sings,) Jeffrey Starr, and James Charles. Manny MUA was also announced as Maybelline’s first ever Male Brand Ambassador at the beginning of the year, as part of the Big Shot Mascara campaign, which adds another company to the list of those normalizing makeup for all genders! Gutierrez released a video in August of 2016, where he discusses his coming out story as a Mormon and reactions he got when he started wearing makeup. Through cosmetics, he is able to share his passion with the world as well as empower others to be themselves, especially other boys who are scared or nervous to break through the glass of societal norms.
4. Patrick Starrr
Patrick Starrr is an incredibly talented makeup artist. His YouYube account has over two million subscribers and consists of the typical things you would find on most beauty vlogger channels: Tutorials, hauls, Q&As, etc. There is one video he made, where he really stands up for makeup being gender-free and explains his story of how makeup has helped him reach a higher level of happiness which is why he wants to empower others to do the same!